Review: The Da Vinci Code
Most readers of Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code were skepticle when talk began of a widescreen version. How can a movie adaptation possibly do justice to the careful intricacies of a masterpiece? How can such controversial issues be presented in such an obvious manner? How can Tom
Hanks pretend to be 20 years younger than he actual is?It seems that a larger portion of the consciously literate public has read and reread The Da Vinci Code. It's not often that a book, even a best seller, is discussed and recommended outside universities and/or book clubs, but occassionally a gem amongst rocks warrants talk. Though I'd always intended to get my hands on Brown's treasure, it hadn't quite happened in time for the movie release.
A veritable flop in theatres, The Da Vinci Code, slammed into cement walls of expectations. The problem, I think, is that too many viewers had read the book. The screen version of literature lives up to its written words approximately one percent of the time, in my opinion - one with which I'm sure most can readily agree. I'm also sure that The Da Vinci Code was no exception, and that the film gave Brown's literary following nothing to write home about.
Let's stop for a moment though. For the small population out there who has not read the book, was the movie as atrocious as critics made it out to be? I think not. In fact, I quite enjoyed the fast-paced action, the plot twists (though sometimes predictable), the truly screwy characters and the inventive but plausible take on historical fact. It didn't matter to me that Hanks' Robert Langdon was a few years too senior, or that Sophie Neveu's (played by Audrey Tautou) brother was still dead in the end. All else aside, it was an
entertaining, and (wait for it...) FRESH 147 minutes. Highly recommended for unbiased movie-goers looking for a thinker.On a sidenote: I am noticing (German?) actor, Paul Bettany pop up in more films lately and am quite taken with him. His searingly accurate role in The Da Vinci Code as God's plagued hitman is quite a leap from the nude version of Shakespeare he played in A Knight's Tale some years ago. At this early(?) point in his acting career, I think Bettany can do nothing better than challenge himself with diverse roles, all of which he masterfully exacts. I've got Bettany pinned as an up-and-comer, red-carpetwise.
" red carpetwise" aaahhhhh save me from such americanisations, in other respects a fair assessment.
LOL len